Time's Guardian
by GallifreyanMaiden
Summary: Lily Potter is an Unspeakable who has been entrusted with an important task- the protection of Time during the second war against Voldemort. Lily is keenly aware of her duty- but what will happen when she falls in love with a man fated to die? TimeTravel
1. Chapter 1

The Protector of Time

By GallifreyanMaiden

Summery- At thirty, Lily Potter is a prominent Unspeakable in the Department of Mysteries. She is the Mistress of Time; the ultimate authority on Time and anything to do with it in the Department. When Time appears to be changing, one small event sending it spinning out of control, Lily must go back and set it to rights before the darkest time that her world has ever known returns to send Time itself spinning into chaos.

…

Chapter 1: The Vortex

Lily Potter stared tiredly at a mixture of numbers, runes and symbols, stopping only to take another long sip of coffee. Her posture sagged as she looked back down at her mess of papers; she quickly ran her thin fingers through her hair before picking up her quill and returning to work. Had anyone chanced to come by Lily Potter's office at that moment, they would have been left with the distinct impression that they were looking at a woman on the verge of collapse; her skin had the coloring and texture of the aged parchment that she so frequently consulted and her dark auburn hair stuck out at odd angles, hinting at the fact that she had fallen asleep at her desk more than once. She rubbed at her liquid brown eyes with considerable force, but nothing would remove the harsh purple bags from under them but sleep.

A timid knock sounded at her door, "Madame Potter?" called out the mousey little voice of Lily's secretary, June.

Lily threw down her quill in frustration, "What, June?" she snapped, "What could possibly be wrong? I swear to Merlin, if Klein's gone and fudged the timeturner information again because he was too goddamn lazy to look it up…"

June blushed floridly as she spoke again, "N-no, it's nothing like that…um…it's just that you were supposed to be at the induction of the trainees five minutes ago…"

Lily looked down at her watch and cursed loudly as she realized that this was indeed the case. She ran down the hall at full tilt, charming her hair and face as she went, her black pumps clicking against the hard granite and her cheeks flushing as she ran. It would be quicker, she decided, to get to the Halls of Time via the main entrance, rather than the roundabout way that she normally took from her office. Upon reaching the circular room that contained naught but a few doors, Lily took a moment to compose herself before gently laying her hand on the wooden door in front of her.

"The Halls of Time," she whispered hastily, her voice high and breathy, even as the walls around her began to spin. She grabbed ahold of the aged handle that stopped before her as the walls stopped their spinning and carefully composed her face into a mask of utter calm before she pulled the rough hewn door open. The soft click of her heels as she walked up to her appointed seat went unnoticed as all of the eager trainees gazed up at the Department head with uniform looks of wonder. Lily shook her head slightly with a mixture of amusement and disbelief; it was hard to believe that she'd ever been that young. She settled herself serenely into her seat, her back straight and her legs demurely crossed, sitting as if on a throne. From the raised dais that had been spelled into the middle of the room, Laura Madley, a woman of intermittent age who was the Head of the Department of Mysteries shot a glance at her and raised an eyebrow quickly. Lily responded with a wry smirk and simply sat up a bit straighter; in a few moments, she was on.

"And now," said Laura, in her large, carrying voice that Lily knew one naturally developed within weeks of obtaining a position of authority, "I present to you a woman who almost all of you will likely either work with, speak with or report to. Madame Lillian Potter-" Laura waited patiently for the excited whispering that always accompanied the mention of the name 'Potter' to subside, "As I was saying. Madame Potter is the Department's Mistress of Time; she works with and oversees any and all departments having to do with the aforementioned subject. She has proven herself a dedicated Unspeakable over her thirteen years with us and I cannot think of anyone better to introduce you to your newly chosen field."

A polite smattering of applause followed as Lily walked smoothly up to the dais, nodding at Laura as they passed each other on the steps, "You are too kind, Madame Madley. Thank you," she quickly turned her attention to the new recruits and without any preamble said, "Today, you join the ranks of some of the brightest witches and wizards in the wizarding community. Today is also the day that you join the ranks of the most unrecognized talents ever," Lily paused. Only silence met her. She smiled inwardly and went on, her voice more severe, "If you take only one thing away from this speech today, take this; an Unspeakable's greatest honor is the keeping of her silence. Nothing, not life nor death nor pain nor glory, is more important than the keeping of the secrets that we uncover within these walls. If you cannot live up to that, than you may as well leave now," she stopped her speech again to look closely at the small crowd. Not one person had moved an inch. She went on, "No truly great Unspeakable has taken this job to garner power or glory. It is not in the nature of our work. We work and research and discover in silence. The wizarding world at large may not know of what your work has resulted in for decades. Even then, you may not be given credit. We labor for the sake of knowledge, for the sake of uncovering the secrets of this world. The sweetest satisfaction any Unspeakable can hope to achieve is to be able, even if it is just for a moment, to see past the hodgepodge and the chaos and to see the beauty and order that the universe so carefully weaves. We sacrifice a fair few freedoms that other wizards have in order to obtain that single moment, however, plenty of Unspeakables have declared it one of the most meaningful in their lives. I finish this speech with only one with; the wish that you might experience that moment during your career with the Department, and that you might appreciate its full value when you do."

The new trainees looked at her with something beyond awe. Lily allowed herself a bit of self-satisfaction as she nodded modestly and left the dais to thundering applause.

She was good.

…

Still glowing from the success of her speech, Lily shoved aside her complex jumble of notes and treated herself to a nice cup of hot tea. She smiled genuinely for the first time in ages as she raised the steaming mug to her lips and lifted her trim legs to rest upon the desk. She began to drift in a pleasant haze almost immediately after her first sip and closed her eyes as she raised the mug for a second.

She felt that she was justified in being more than a bit annoyed when June's knock sounded at her door.

"Yes?" she called out flatly, still put out that her first moment of relaxation in months had been interrupted.

"Artemisia Wilkes to see you, Madame Potter. She says that it's urgent," June said timidly as she poked her head through the small crack in the doorway.

Lily readied herself hurriedly, "Yes, yes, send her in," she replied as she quickly made herself respectable. June nodded once and shut the door.

Lily had just settled herself as soon as a young blonde girl walked in. Her curly hair flounced down to her waist and was held back by a thin red headband, her dark blue eyes looked serious as she marched silently up to Lily's desk and took a seat in front of it, "We have a problem, Madame Potter."

Lily raised one delicate, plucked eyebrow, "Care to elaborate, Miss Wilkes?"

Artemisia nodded wearily, "It's the Vortex. It's gone rather funny, warping far beyond the normal levels. It's even gone off-color. None of the researchers can solve it and it's been decided that you should look into it before Time begins to suffer."

Lily looked stricken for a moment and then replied hoarsely, "Are you sure?"

Artemisia quirked a thin eyebrow in reply, "Would I be here if I wasn't?"

Lily nodded gravely and stood, "Right, well, follow me," she said, leading Artemisia at a fast clip down various hallways and past offices until she reached a great wooden door, to which she hissed her favorite flavor of jam, "Cherry." The door swung open obligingly and she raced to the smaller wooden door behind it, "The Vortex," she whispered breathlessly after hastily laying her hand against the door. A soft click sounded and Lily entered the room at a run with Artemisia following quickly behind her. She tucked a flyaway red strand back behind her ear before she stared intently into the small pool before her. This pool, which looked a bit like an overlarge pensive, was contained within a golden bowl and, under normal circumstances, was a black vortex shot through with blue and purple. However, as Lily stared into its depths, gripping the golden sides until her knuckles turned white, the Vortex was shot through with ever increasing amounts of red. She knew what this meant, but she hardly dared to believe it, Time was changing and the Universe was struggling to allow for it.

She looked up at Artemisia, gasping for air, "Fetch Madame Madley, quickly!" she said, abandoning any pretense of relative calm that she had held before, "Tell her to meet me here to discuss the immediate activation of Temporal Protocol One!"

Artemisia simply gaped at her in shock, "Go now!" Lily hissed at her as she stumbled over to a chair and collapsed. Artemisia ran to get the Department head whilst Lily ran a hand nervously through her hair. Something had changed in the past, something small, but that small thing had initiated a series of events that could not have been predicted. All of these events, though, would soon cumulate into one thing.

The return of the darkest wizard that her world had ever known.


	2. Chapter 2

In the Room of the Vortex, Laura Madley looked rather ill. Her skin was tinged with an undertone of green and her pupils had shrunk to pinpricks. In a scant ten minutes, Laura appeared to have aged ten years.

"I'm looking again," she announced to the only other person in the room, her colleague, Lily Potter, who was looking rather ill herself as she sat in the deepest shadows of the room.

"Damn it, Laura!" Lily shouted, suddenly shooting up off of her seat and banging her fist on the desk in front of her, "This will be the third time you've looked! I tell you, you can look into that thing thee times or three thousand, but you aren't going to see anything different!"

Laura sank to the ground next to the Vortex, placing her head in her hands, "But it can't be…it just can't…"

Lily looked down at her hands; they were clenched tight on the edge of the desk in front of her, "But it can be, Laura," she hissed quietly, "It is."

The other woman ran a shaky hand through her graying hair, "But Protocol One, Lily? Are-are you sure that this is our only option? It's never even been tried before."

Lily gave a harsh, bitter laugh that made her sound almost mad, "Nothing else will work. You know it as well as I do." Lily walked closer to Laura after finishing, placing her hand breifly on Laura's shoulder. As she walked, she spared a glance at the Vortex, now pulsing even more wildly, the red within the black now deepening to scarlet. Lily shuddered at the ominous sign, the Universe was losing to temporal changes, and badly, the formerly bright red now looked distubingly like blood.

Laura sighed and gave a defeated nod, "I suppose the only other question is who to send back…"

Lily's thin brows shot up in surprise, "I would have thought the answer obvious, Laura," she paused briefly, "Me."

Laura looked up, no longer weary at all, her eyes positively hawk-like, "You?" she reesonded increduously, "Lily are you seriously asking me to send you off to one of the most dangerous periods in wizarding history? To have you-to have you…you know…and then to wait out the rest of the war? Keeping an eye on everything to make sure nothing else goes amiss?"

Her redheaded counterpart replied casually, as if commenting on the weather, "Yes. Yes, I am."

She shook her head vigorously, appearing to be near panic, "I'm not letting you…I won't allow it."

Lily hissed in frustration, "Laura there is not a single person in this entire department who has enough expertise to pull this off! It's not as if you can do it! Excuses can be made for me, but everyone in Britain will notice if the head of the Department of Mysteries goes missing!"

Laura raised an eyebrow and assessed Lily with a critical eye, "You're too young," she said, with a note of finality.

"Exactly!" replied Lily looking exasperated, "Anyone else who would be brought in to handle this would have been alive during the war! Their magical signature will register with the Ministry! I won't have been born yet! So long as I keep my head down and my nose clean, not a single person outside of the Department need know that I exist!"

Laura's gaze pierced her, "Listen to me and listen well, Lillian Luna Potter. You have no idea what that war was like," she raised her hand as Lily opened her mouth to speak, "Oh, I know that your family fought, I know that you've grown up hearing tales of the war…But you cannot truly know the horror of it all until you've witnessed it firsthand. I was fourteen during the worst of it, you know," she shook her head, "And I was Muggleborn too. I spent nearly all of my fourth year in the Room of Requirement because I refused to register," she raised her head proudly, "Ask yourself, are you truly prepared for this?"

Shaking her head, Lily replied, "I think that I am, Laura. And, in the end, it doesn't really matter, does it? I'm our best option, maybe our only option. Nothing is more important than this task. Sirius Black has to die."

Laura sighed and stood up, "You're right, of course," she said, walking over to Lily and briefly shaking her hand.

Lily nodded, returning the shake, she responded, her voice unnaturally steady, "The standard time period, then? For assuming the worst?"

Laura returned her nod, "One year from the day of your departure."

"I'll go tomorrow, then," Lily replied, "I think that my parents should hear it from me first, rather than some-" she gulped down the rest of her sentence, she couldn't bring herself to think of a faceless Ministry employee informing her parents that she had died in her line of duty to the Department.

Laura raised an eyebrow imperiously, "Keep it minimal, Lily. Remember, an Unspeakable's greatest honor-"

"Is her silence," Lily finished ruefully, bowing her head, "Trust me, I know."

"I'll make the arrangements, then," Laura replied stoically, "Good luck, Lily."

Lily responded with half of a weak smile, "And to you, Laura."

The two women departed the room hastily, each off to perform her own task. As the doors shut, the torches went out, leaving the only source of light in the room to be the Vortex, ominously pulsing it's scarlet light.


	3. Chapter 3

Lily walked quickly through the mass of corridors that led to her office, nodding occasionally whenever a greeting was directed her way. Her hair was long and wavy after having come out of her usual French twist; however she was hardly in the mood to care. She brushed off June's cheery greeting as she shut her door behind her and strode over to her personal Floo. She tossed the sparkling green powder into the flames and rolled her eyes before calling out the name of her childhood home, "The Lions' Den!"

Her parents had never quite lost their Gryffindor pride.

Lily walked into the bright green flames and was spun through to her parent's house in Godric's Hollow. She stepped out of the large fireplace in their kitchen and was immediately assaulted by the smell of fresh-baked bread. Her smile was radiant as she ran up behind the baker to give him a hug, "Hi, Dad," she said lightly, punctuating her greeting with a kiss on her fathers' cheek. Harry Potter turned around in surprise and promptly dropped his bread pan on the stovetop before embracing his only daughter in a crushing bear hug.

"Lily!" he exclaimed, returning her fond peck on the cheek, "We weren't expecting you to drag yourself away from the office until Saturday! What's the occasion?"

Having momentarily forgotten the somber reason why she had come to see her parents, Lily's face fell at her fathers' mention of why she was paying her parents this unexpected visit. Luckily, though, she was given a bit of time to gather herself due to her mothers' entrance into the room.

"Harry?" she called out from the hallway, "I thought that I heard voices-Oh, Lily!" she exclaimed with surprise, running over to her daughter for a tight embrace. As her mother stepped back, Lily took stock of her mother: despite being in her mid-fifties, Ginny Potter's hair had only faded slightly and was still relatively vivid and bright and she had kept it just as long as it had been in her youth. Her eyes were nearly the mirror image of her daughters', although Lily had inherited their almond shape from her father.

"Oh, Lily, you're too thin!" Ginny exclaimed, "Here, I'll fix you some tea. Oh, would you be a dear and take these to the table? Thank you, love," she said, thrusting a large plate of biscuits into Lily's bony hands as she rapped the tea kettle smartly with her wand. While her mother bustled about the kitchen fetching spoons and sugar, Lily shook her head ruefully and made her way to the kitchen table, sometimes there was just no place like home.

As they fell into pointless chatter, Lily allowed herself to once again forget the unpleasant reason as to why she had come in the first place. She just thoroughly enjoyed having tea with her parents for what the relentlessly realistic part of her knew could very well be the last time. Her eyes darted around the scene hungrily, devouring every minute detail; the way that her mother unconsciously traced her finger around the rim of her teacup as she spoke, the way that her fathers' eyes sparkled as her related a particularly amusing story that he'd heard in the lift from that fellow in Experimental Charms, even the way that her fathers' hair had grayed, more pepper than salt and still remarkably thick and unruly.

Finally, however, Lily had to face reality, and as she sipped the last cold dregs of her tea, she looked gravely up at her parents. It was a few moments before she could find her voice, but when she did, it was thick and gravelly, "We need to talk," she said simply, setting down her cup.

"What's the matter, Lily?" her father asked quietly, laying his large, vaguely calloused hand over hers.

"Lily?" asked her mother nervously in the interim where she struggled to once again find her voice.

"I have to go away," she managed finally, "On a special mission for the Department."

"To where?" they both asked at the same time, looking at her intently.

"Can't you see us?" asked her mother, looking worried.

"Can you contact us?" her father cut in immediately.

"No, no I can't," replied Lily, her voice dry and raspy despite having drank only moments ago.

"Well, why not?" Ginny shot back, her temper now as fiery as her hair.

"It would be…difficult," she replied, searching for words that wouldn't reveal too much.

"Can't someone else do it?" asked her father, his voice almost pleading.

"No," she replied, having no problem finding her voice, her tone now strong and steely.

Her father laughed briefly, but it was hollow and watery, "Well, it's not as if I'd thought that you'd say yes," he said, "Try to stay alive, okay? Your grandmother will be desperately disappointed if you die unmarried."

He briefly clapped her on the shoulder. Lily took a deep, shuddering breath, "That's another thing. If-if I don't return a year from tomorrow," she tried to take another breath, but it kept hitching, "You-you are to a-assume the worst," she managed to finish before collapsing into silent tears. For ages, she and her parents simply huddled together at that kitchen table and hugged until Lily finally broke the mournful silence.

"Right," she said, wiping the tears from under her eyes, "I'm not dead yet, in any case," at this her mother laughed wetly and shot her a half-hearted glare, "But, well, just-just give everyone my love, okay?"

"Even if you hadn't asked us to," replied her father with half of a smile.

"I love you, Daddy," she whispered as he embraced her in an inhumanly tight hug.

"I love you too, Lil," he replied as he reluctantly let go.

"Love you, Mum."

"Be safe," Ginny whispered into her shoulder.

As she went to the fireplace to grab a pinch of floo powder, her eyes fell across a picture from years and years ago, from her mothers' Harpy days. There was Ginny, in her Quidditch robes, Harry with a hand around her waist and kissing her lightly, Lily, at eight years old, with her arms wrapped around her mothers' hips, Al, waving shyly, pushing his glasses back up his nose…James wasn't there, he must have been at Hogwarts…but Uncle Ron was…he was crying up by the goals…Hmm, the Chudley Cannons must have just lost…

Lily shook herself out of her thoughts and quickly grabbed her floo powder and threw it into the flames, which immediately turned a startling green, "Goodbye," she said, one last time, "The Eagles' Perch!" she called out, smirking in spite of herself.

She had never quite lost her House pride either.

…

A/N- Happy Easter! Happy End-of-Passover as well! Please drop some reviews into my Easter basket! ;)


	4. Chapter 4

A/N- Okay, so I've just been itching to write these next couple of chapters ever since I first thought of this story. I feel like these are where the story really starts and I hope that you love them just as much as I do.

…

Laura Madley looked down at her watch irritably as she paced in front of a large golden chair with what appeared to be a gigantic golden timeturner atop it. Her lips were pressed thin and white as she strained to hear the sound of Lily Potter's pumps clicking up the corridor towards the Room of Experimental Time Travel. This circular room was dimly lit with only a few torches, its high dome unable to be seen for want of light. A thin wall of glass separated the increasingly irritated Madame Madley from a small group of highly trusted Unspeakables, who were in the corridor-like room beyond fiddling with various dials and keys.

An aged wooden door opened, allowing Lily Potter entrance into the inner portion of the room. Everyone in the vicinity gave a little start when they laid eyes on her; it was not as if they had consciously been expecting her to arrive in her usual black skirt and pumps, but still, it was a bit disconcerting to connect the strict, businesslike appearance of Madame Potter with this woman's flowing auburn waves and silky emerald top, her heelless boots and her dark Muggle jeans. Madame Madley gathered herself quickly and quirked an eyebrow at Lily.

"I'm sorry to be cutting it so close, Laura," she said, looking flustered, removing a large bell jar from underneath her arm, "Here," she said quickly, shoving it into Madame Madley's arms, "This ought to help, I got the jar from the boys in the Hall of Time and I put that inside," she gestured at a thick, leather bound journal, "It's an exact copy of this," she held up another book in her hand of the same description, "They both have transcriptions of my dad's stories of the war, exactly as he's told them to me. They've also go some of the more significant events in my family, written out in detail. The one in the bell jar should be protected, even if the timeline changes. If I succeed, they should still read as copies once I've finished."

Laura's expression softened, "I will miss these little strokes of brilliance, Lily," she replied with a smile as she took the book out of Lily's hand, "I'll keep them both in my office. What's in your bag?"

Lily swung it off her back and pawed through it, "Not much," she replied with a shrug, "Some gold to keep me going until I get a job, a few changes of clothes, that proof of blood purity thingy, that letter that I'm going to charm once I get to the past Department…Nothing that will give me away."

Laura nodded, "Good, and don't worry, the Master of Time in 1996 was your predecessor, Alex James, and we know that he was never compromised. How's your wand?"

Lily smirked, "In perfect working order."

Laura looked worried for a minute, biting her lip before saying, "And you understand the risks Lily? Not just for the mission, but just in the travel? The Department has never sent a person this far back before."

Lily rolled her eyes good-naturedly, "I understand Laura. You've made my excuses?"

She nodded officiously, "Of course. Officially, you're in Brazil, hunting down a Lethifold for usage in top secret experimentation," she paused briefly, "Well then," she replied, looking proud, "Good luck."

Lily smiled, "Thank you. Oh, and Laura, I nearly forgot. I want Artemisia Wilkes trained as my replacement…just in case," said Lily with a significant look.

"Of course, Lily," Laura replied with a gentle nod.

"Well…see you soon," Lily called out with a roguish grin as she sat in the golden chair, smirking in spite of her fear. Lily saw Laura's mouth move in reply, but she never heard her. The sensation of traveling through time wasn't much different than that of traveling via Apparition, except that the unpleasantness was multiplied by a hundred. It was nothing like the sensation of checking the Vortex, where she would tell the Vortex where she needed to go and it would take her. No, this was more like simultaneously being shot out of a cannon and shoved through a straw. Barely, just barely, she could see the Vortex swirling by her and around her- for all she knew, it was flowing through her. She could feel her ears popping and her bones creaking- but then it stopped. She was once again in the golden chair, with the timeturner above her, but it was different. The chair looked newer…still old, mind you, but less so. Only two torches were lit and not a single person lurked in the room beyond.

"Tempus," she hissed under her breath and her wand shot bright, gleaming words into the air before her. She smiled at what it confirmed as she read, _June 20__th__, 1996. 8 PM._

She had done it.


	5. Chapter 5

Lily quickly got her bearings and silently slipped out of the Room of Experimental Time Travel. She immediately cast a disillusionment charm on herself before making her way through the maze of hallways towards the main entrance. There, she waited patiently until someone headed for The Veil. She slowly made her way to the man's back and followed him through the door, careful not to step on the back of his feet.

Once she was in the room, Lily quickly separated from the wizard who had unwittingly gained her entrance, moving around to the topmost riser on the opposite side. Eventually, Lily sat; she stared down at The Veil, miniscule from her high perch, sweat gathering on her brow as she tried to get used to the fact that, in a few hours, she would have to cause the death of an innocent man in this room. She had seen the sad flicker in her father's eyes whenever he spoke of his godfather. Knowing that she was about to cause that lifelong sadness was almost more than Lily could bear, but her task had to be completed…for the greater good...for the sake of the wizarding world.

She waited there until eleven thirty, a time when even she would have left her office by. Leaving the room, she shut the door quietly behind her and patiently waited for the room to stop spinning. "The offices of the department," she whispered, lightly touching the old wooden door, opening it when it fell into place seconds later. Despite the complete desertion of the offices, Lily still worked hard to make as little noise as possible; she used rolled footsteps, rounded corners slowly and didn't make a sound all the way to what would one day be her office. Lily looked around her carefully before she soundlessly opened the old door and entered the office, closing the door gently and slowly.

Finally, Lily removed her disillusioning charm. She streched like a cat quickly before she pulled off the backpack she wore and dug through it until she found the small roll of parchment that she was searching for. Despite knowing the brief but important note by heart, she pulled off the neat red bow and read it again.

_Dear Mister Alexander T. James,_

_Temporal Protocol One has been activated. I have been sent to resolve the dissonance. I request only that you meet me in the Room of Experimental Time Travel at midnight on the third of May, 1998. Tell no one. Destroy after reading._

_Madame L. L. P. _

_Mistress of Time_

Lily spent more time than was strictly necessary in the office, neatening the bow before finally placing the note onto the desk with pale, shaking hands. She directed her oaken wand at the scroll and tapped it lightly. The scroll disappeared, only to reappear again when Alexander James was alone in this room on the second of May. Heaving a huge sigh, Lily closed her backpack and disillusioned herself once again. Opening the door slowly, Lily set out for the main entrance to the Department. She once again laid her hand to the old wood and opened the door to The Veil. She walked around one of the middle rows on the opposite side of the room, reasoning that no duels and few ricochets would reach her so far from the door. Lily hazarded a guess at the time and the series of events that would be taking place at the moment; her father had probably already entered the Ministry, he and her mother, aunts and uncles would be entering the Department any minute. They'd probably reach the Hall of Prophecy about ten minutes, if that, after their arrival, and would enter the fight here about an hour afterwards, probably less.

Lily spent the longest hour of her life sitting on that bench. Sweat slicked her palms and her brow more and more with each passing minute while she fruitlessly tried to moisten her dry lips and arid throat. Her hands shook tremendously to the point where she was almost unable to hold her wand. Truthfully, she didn't know if she could speak the spell to ensure that Bellatrix Lestrange's curse sent Sirius Black through The Veil at all. The tales that her father had told of Sirius over the years reverberated in her head. She knew that even now he still grieved his godfather. She knew that she would now have to cause her father that grief. For the first time in her life, she didn't know if she could put her own feelings aside for the purpose of the greater good.

Finally, the Death Eaters and the DA members came through the door. Despite the fact that she knew that all of her family lived, it still sent a chill down her spine to see them losing their duels so badly. It took every last bit of her determination, strength and good sense not to start cursing the Death Eaters into oblivion. At last, the Order members burst through the door and began to even the score, distracting the Death Eaters from their more easily defeated prey. Cold determination set into Lily as she watched Sirius with a hawk's eye. He and Bellatrix made their way down to the platform as if in slow motion…she saw that Sirius was in the perfect position and that he was about to move away…

"_Confundus_," she murmured hoarsely, her wand arm still shaking slightly. Numbly, she watched the events on the dais…Sirius hesitated for a moment…and a moment was all that was necessary for the curse to send him through The Veil. She watched as her father was held back by Remus Lupin…she watched as he broke free and ran after Bellatrix…she watched as Aurors appearated and began to arrest the Death Eaters still in the Department.

Slowly, the room emptied and Lily was lying on her bench, barely registering the coldness and discomfort of the roughhewn stone bench. She could have been lying on that bench for mere minutes or maybe for hours…even for days. Tears leaked unbidden from her eyes, her teeth clenched and her brow tensed as she shut her eyes tightly, hoping to wake from this nightmare either in her office or in her bed. Eventually, she found the will to rise; her joints cracking as she got up off the bench, Lily pushed herself up and wobbled slightly before she found her balance. She moved across the riser with legs made of water and went towards the door. When she reached the top step, she began to reach for the door handle.

Lily gasped as she was grabbed about the waist and pulled into folds of cloth. She shouted as she felt her disillusioning charm being undone. Her wand was taken from her before she could react and she was quickly petrified. A deep, silky voice whispered menicingly behind her and said, "You, Miss, are coming with me."


	6. Chapter 6

A/N- Okay, so I really do need to explain myself on why I didn't update for so long. Basically, I was writing the 5th chapter and, like an idiot, I didn't do intermittent saves as I went along. Well, about three or four pages in (don't ask why the rewrite was so much shorter, I have no idea), my computer shutdown and Word didn't recover the document. I was really devastated to have lost all of my work so close to the end and I basically never got back to it. Then my story suddenly started getting reviews and favorites again so long after I had last updated, then I remembered it and how much I had liked the plotline and decided to finish it. Many thanks to the readers and reviewers from the last chapter! FYI reviews are highly appreciated ;)

…

Lily desperately wanted to struggle as she was ferried through the deserted halls of Hogwarts, her mind working quickly to find a way out. But she had no wand and she was still petrified, not only in body, but in mind as well. She no longer held the reins and had no control of what would happen to her next, of whether or not her cover would be blown. One word ran through her head over and over again, '_Stupid_.' She'd been too confident, too lazy, too distracted to consider the possibility that other people might have been watching unseen as well. Soon enough, though, her thoughts traveled to the situation at hand. She assumed that she was being taken to the headmaster's office for interrogation, that much was obvious, but she had no idea what they would do to get the information out of her. How far would the Order of the Phoenix go to break the person who had indirectly caused the death of one of their own?

They'd reached the headmaster's office sooner than Lily had expected. She knew that they'd reached the stone gargoyle when she heard Severus Snape call out, 'Pepper Imps,' strongly in his deep, silky baritone. He lifted them both up onto the winding staircase, and she was surprised at the care he took not to bump her against the light brown stones. He opened the dark wooden door without preamble and turned her upright, leaning her up against the wall like a board.

"What happened here?" he asked, one eyebrow raised in surprise, seemingly forgetting about his prisoner for the moment. He had the right to be surprised too, Lily observed, taking in what she could of the mess in her frozen state. Everything that could be broken in the room seemed to have been, wood and glass and silver all smashed upon the floor. Admittedly, her father had told her of this incident, but she'd never really imagined it as having been quite this bad.

Dumbledore sighed and shook his head wearily, "No more than I deserved, Severus, no more than I deserved," his head as well as his eyebrows shot up as he looked at Lily leaning against the wall, "Would you care to introduce our guest, Severus?"

Severus shook his head and raised his wand, "In a moment, Albus. Would you care for some assistance in clearing this up?" he asked, gesturing widely at the largely destroyed room.

The old man smiled weakly, "Of course."

With that, both men raised their wands and swept them across the room, objects reassembling themselves as they went. In moments, the whole room had been cleared, and one would never have guessed at the state that it had been in before. Once the office had been cleared, though, the headmaster looked over to Lily again and asked, "Who is this young lady you've brought with you, Severus? From her state I'd hardly say that this is a social visit."

Severus sneered, "Shockingly. She was in the Department of Mysteries under a Disillusion Charm when I arrived to keep watch on Potter and his band of merry misfits. I heard her walking on the marble. She knew how to call the proper rooms in the Department and went to The Veil. I followed her until she sat on the far end and just waited, when the fight came to The Veil, she kept watching, until Black and Bellatrix's fight came near The Veil. She the waited a few moments until she cast the only spell she had all night; she Confunded Black, causing him to be hit by Bellatrix's curse and to be sent into The Veil."

The headmaster's mouth thinned and his eyes sharpened, "I see. I don't suppose that you have any Verteriserum, do you Severus?"

The younger man snorted, "You don't think that I would give that idiot woman anything stronger than water, do you?" he said, pulling a minute bottle full of clear liquid out of a billowing sleeve.

Dumbledore nodded, "Thank you, my boy," he said, conjuring a wooden chair, "Now if you would just bind her and untie her, please? Then we can get on with this business."

Severus flicked his wand and ropes flew out, binding her legs and her arms; another flick and she was unpetrified. The ropes tightened swiftly upon her unpetrification, binding her hands behind her back.

"Let go of me!" Lily shouted as she was carried to the chair, struggling with all of her might against her bonds. When the Potions Master had finally gotten his wriggling captive into the chair, he flicked his wand and still more ropes flew out, binding her about the shoulders, waist and legs. Lily struggled against the additional bonds as well, but to no avail. Her efforts proved fruitless, but she still struggled, sweat dampening her auburn hair.

"Administer the Verteriserum, Severus," Dumbledore commanded coldly. The younger man complied, and although she bit his hand hard enough to make him bleed, he managed to open the woman's mouth wide enough to administer the Verteriserum.

"What is your name?" Dumbledore asked as Severus bandaged his injured hand. After a moment, both stared at her in shock, because although she glared at them fiercely, the woman did not speak a word. Her lips were pressed thin as she fought the Verteriserum with all of the willpower she had at her disposal.

"Is there something wrong with the potion, Severus?" Dumbledore asked, taking his eyes away from the redheaded woman.

He looked offended, "I brewed this Verteriserum myself. There is _nothing_ wrong with the potion."

"Then why is she not compelled to respond?" he asked.

"Well, there is one possibility…" Severus replied, trailing off.

"What?" asked Dumbledore, looking impatient.

"She could be resisting the potion," he said, looking intently at Lily, "It is possible, although it takes intense training. If one can fight replying while under Verteriserum, throwing off an Imperious curse is no harder than walking and chewing gum at the same time."

Dumbledore looked impressed, "Is there any way to subvert it?"

Severus shook his head, "Not officially...but I do have an idea…If you will excuse me for a moment?"

"Of course."

Severus walked to the Floo and called for his personal quarters, he stepped through the shocking green flames and disappeared in a mix of green flame and flowing black robes. The fire flared again a few moments later, Severus stepping out with a flask in hand.

"Concentrated Calming Draught," he explained to an interested looking Dumbledore and to a fierce looking Lily, "I believe that enough Draught will cause her willpower to falter, thus ceasing her resistance to the Verteriserum."

As Severus administered the Calming Draught, Lily was less able to fight back than she was before, all of her energy going towards fighting the Verteriserum. After forcing her mouth open, he was able to get a good cup of the stuff down her throat, stopping only when she began to relax and slump against her bonds.

"Now let's try this again," he said with a smirk, "What is your name?"

"Lily Potter," she responded in a stupor.

His eyebrows forced themselves tightly together, "What is your age?"

"Thirty," she said promptly.

"Why were you in the Department of Mysteries?"

"Temporal Protocol One," she said, her voice slurred.

"Why did you Confund Sirius Black?"

"Temporal Protocol One," she said again.

Severus rubbed his brow in frustration, "What _is_ 'Temporal Protocol One'?"

"When Time is in danger, a member of the Department is sent back to set it right," she replied, giggling a bit from the effects of the Draught.

"What is your Department?"

She laughed, "The Department of Mysteries."

Dumbledore quickly jumped in, "I've heard enough. Severus, is there any way that we can have a civil conversation with Miss Potter?"

He inclined his head towards the Headmaster, "I can give her an antidote for the Verteriserum, but I'm afraid that we'll have to wait for the Draught to wear off. It wont take long, maybe twelve hours."

Dumbledore sighed, "Do what you can, my boy. Find her a place to sleep and then get some yourself. I think that we've all had more than enough for one night. "

He rubbed his eyes and involuntarily released a small yawn as he carried Lily to the Floo, "I must say that I agree. Goodnight, Headmaster."

And once again, Severus Snape disappeared in a flash of green flames and billowing robes.

…

REVEIWS! (please...)


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Severus Snape shepherded his charge through the passageways of Hogwarts as she drowsily tripped along beside him. He stole a sideways glance at her every now and again, although he needn't have been so discreet; the Calming Draught had made her nearly inert. As he looked at her again, his heart swelled with pain; she looked so like his Lily every time her eyes, thick with dark lashes, were covered by their heavy lids. It was the most striking difference between the two and, had those dark brown irises not intervened, he might have allowed himself to believe that Lily Potter, his Lily Potter, had risen from the dead.

They reached Severus's rooms with relatively little trouble. He tapped his wand to a small cracked stone and an archway appeared, which he half-led, half-shoved Lily through. The archway opened directly into Severus's small, rather modest, set of rooms; they entered into the torch-lit parlor, which featured a good-sized fireplace. Off to the left was a hallway that had only three doors; one of which led to his bedroom, the next, to his study and the third, to the bathroom. Severus situated Lily in an armchair and then proceeded to conjure up a set of sheets that smartly fit themselves to the sofa- after these came a pillow, and then a blanket. He quickly banished her shoes and gently led her to the bed, grabbing the blanket and drawing it over her with an uncommon gentleness. Almost immediately, she fell asleep, leaving Severus to a night of fitful, restless sleep, full of frightful memories that he heartily wished were simply dreams.

…

That afternoon, while the students of Hogwarts were spirited away by train to parents terrified by the Voldemort's infiltration of the Ministry, Lily awoke on Severus Snape's couch, dry-mouthed and exhausted. She tossed her hair from her face and looked around, bewildered- she was in a set of rooms that she had never seen before, trying desperately to get her bearings. Suddenly alert, she threw her legs over the couch and was just getting up when-

"Oh. Good, you're awake."

She whipped her head around and found herself staring at Severus Snape, dressed simply in black pants and a pressed white shirt. He walked to the armchair across the teak coffee table and sat down.

"If you would like," he said politely, as if he had not taken her wand and forced potion down her throat only the night before, "I can call a house elf to get you breakfast now. If you would like to wash up, the bathroom is at the end of the hall and to the right. You will find anything that you need inside."

She could not respond to this sudden change of temperament, she could only sit, bewildered.

"Ah, yes. Dumbledore finds you…credible. He wished for us to have a more cordial conversation after the students had left and you were rested."

Lily only nodded, as her throat appeared to have swelled shut from sheer shock. She pushed herself up and proceeded to the bathroom hoping, perhaps, that the shock of cold water might reconcile her to the present. She brushed her teeth and washed her faced gazing at herself unknowingly in the mirror; she had killed a man last night. She had killed a man and it frightened her. All that she could think of as she showered was the lifeblood that now stained her hands. Good God, would she ever be clean again?

…

Severus thought about checking up on Lily in the bathroom- she had been running the shower for over an hour- but, in the end, he decided against it. He knew that she may well have been trying to drown herself or to scald the sins from her flesh- he had tried to do so often enough. That was the trade so often made for that obscure 'greater good'- the soul and sanity of one in exchange for the lives of all. He sighed heavily and returned to his book, muttering that those who believed that keeping the world on its axis was simple were themselves fools.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Lily dressed and crept out of the bathroom, for all the world wishing that she could just sink into the floor. Silently, she opened the door a crack and peered around it, seeing Severus absorbed in a book with his back facing towards her. Desiring nothing more than the postponement of their inevitably awkward conversation, she began to creep down the hall in utter silence.

"Would you like me to order you some breakfast or would you prefer to see Albus immediately?" he called out, never looking over his shoulder. Lily shook her head in silent disbelief…the man had hearing to make a bat jealous.

"I think that I would prefer to meet with Albus first, thank you," her voice crisp and clipped as she made her way into the room. Severus rose as she entered, and nodded briefly in greeting. He made his way towards the door, stopping briefly to swing a cloak around his shoulders against the ever-present chill of the dungeons. Lily made her way after him at a quick clip, attempting to keep up with his great strides.

He stopped short just of the stairwell that led out of the dungeon, causing Lily to slam into his back, much to both their embarrassment. After helping her from the ground and politely asking if she was unhurt, he began to rummage in the pockets of his cloak from whence he withdrew Lily's wand.

"You will forgive me for not returning it earlier," he said formally, "I had quite forgotten about it until now."

"Not at all," she replied, startled at the gesture of kindness and trust from the otherwise stoic and ever-vigilant man. She accepted her wand from his outstretched hand and palmed in reverently. There was a unique sensation of completeness that came with being reunited with her wand, as if she had suddenly noticed a limb that she hadn't realized was missing.

"Thank you," she said softly, looking at the wand with an incredible tenderness.

"My pleasure," he replied gruffly, not having expected such a show of emotion from the witch. He turned quickly and made off up the stairs leaving Lily to catch up once again.

…

They reached the headmaster's office after a journey undertaken in deafening silence. The witch and wizard pointedly avoided eye contact as the gargoyle guardian took agonizingly painful moments to scrape across the floor. Once they reached the spiral staircase, the pair began to steal well-hidden glances at each other, each furiously trying to get the measure of the other.

Dumbledore greeted them promptly with his usual enthusiasm. After the they had settled in the office, he turned to Lily.

"Please accept my apologies for our meeting last night, Madame Potter. My hospitality was…less than cordial."

She smiled kindly at the older man seated across from her, "Not at all, professor. Your caution was…prudent, given the situation."

"Be that as it may, please accept my sincerest apologies. We do live in dangerous times, after all."

She smiled wanly, "Of course. And please, call me Lily."

He offered her a genuine smile, "Of course, Lily. Now, to the present. What are your intentions for the duration of your time here?"

"Largely, I intend to wait out the war…my, ah, heavy lifting, so to speak, has finished. Now I simply need to ensure that nothing else goes wrong."

Dumbledore inclined his head slowly, "Of course, of course…well, you certainly have mine and Severus's services at your disposal. What do you intend to do immediately?"

Lily quirked an eyebrow, "Well, sir, I will need to find employment and somewhat permanent housing for the duration of my stay; my plan was to purchase a cottage in Hogsmeade and find a job in the village. In the meantime, my intention was to reside at the Three Broomsticks."

"Well, Lily, the students will soon leave for the summer holidays- I would have no opposition to you residing in the castle until you can find housing more suited to your needs."

Lily shot up straight in her surprise; she had not expected such a generous offer, "Why, sir," she replied, "It would be my pleasure."

"Lovely, lovely- I assume that you would have no qualms about continuing your stay with Severus while you are here?"

Both the faces of Lily and Severus registered momentary shock and surprise before each began their protest.

"I would never want to impose-"

"Absolutely not-"

"-I have intruded on Professor Snape's privacy enough already-"

"-I have enough on my plate already without this glorified babysitting-"

"Enough," Dumbledore's quiet voice cut through their arguments like a knife, "While I appreciate your niceties, Lily, we cannot allow Voldemort to obtain your knowledge of the future," he held up a hand, "I mean no insult to your undoubtedly considerable capabilities as a witch, however I feel that you must be suitably guarded until you settled. Preferably somewhere with strong wards. Now, Severus," he said, turning to the dour man on his right, "My friend, I realize that you are stretched a bit thin at the moment, but trust me when I say that the situation will be temporary."

Severus sneered ,"So, in other words, we have no choice in the matter."

"No, I'm afraid you do not," Albus replied, his voice and mannerisms matter-of-fact, he turned to Lily, again the genial host, "Will you need to go to the village for anything in the meantime, my dear?"

Lily shook her head, resigned to things as they were, "No, sir. I've everything I'll need with me."

Dumbledore nodded, "Wonderful. You can go into Hogsmeade to begin your inquiries at yours and Severus's earliest mutual convenience," he began to usher the pair out of his office, "Please feel free to stop by anytime. If need be, one of the House Elves should always be available to assist you with your more mundane concerns."

As they reached the door, Lily turned, "Thank you, Professor."

"Not at all my dear, not at all," they said their final goodbyes and Dumbledore shut the door behind him, privately thinking that it would be good for the two young people to be around each other, if only for friendly company.

…

Lily and Severus made their way back down to the dungeons in the same silence in which they had left, both on edge from their meeting with the headmaster. They reached Severus's rooms without incident, where Lily settled herself on the couch in a stiff manner. Severus left the room for a few minutes, leaving her to wonder where he had gone. Just as she was about to settle in with a potions journal that she had found on a side table in the lounge, he returned bearing a large tray laden with enough food to feed five people.

"What?" he responded to her look of surprise, "I haven't eaten yet either. And I can't very well allow a…guest…of mine to waste away."

That got a slight smile from her, "Well, thank you for the consideration," she replied, before gratefully helping herself to the food in front of her.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

It had been a week since Lily had begun her stay with Severus, and, to the shock of both, it had not quite been the disaster they expected. The pair had found that they had a number of common interests, which went a fair way towards greasing the wheels of friendship.

Despite her liking for the Potions Master, Lily felt uncomfortable trying his hospitality for too long. To this end, she had been doing her best to bring her stay to an amicable end. She spent two days in the village looking for work, dropping applications at any shop that would take them. Afterwards she began the grueling search for a suitable place to live- not too far from the village, but with enough property surrounding it that she could ward it properly without drawing attention. She had narrowed her list of properties down to three and was hopeful that she would be able to leave by mid-July.

For his part, Severus had played the part of the gracious host to a tee. He was grateful that Lily had made their forced companionship easy; she was an unobtrusive houseguest and only intruded on his personal time when it was absolutely necessary. Although he looked forward to regaining his privacy, Severus hoped that Lily would agree to continue their ritual of nightly drinks.

That night, after their usual conversation had slipped into a comfortable lull, Severus looked at Lily appraisingly over his brandy. He lowered the glass from his lips and let his gaze lazily drift towards the fire crackling before them.

"You look like her, you know," he commented nonchalantly.

"Pardon me?" Lily replied, sputtering a bit.

"Your grandmother; you bear a striking resemblance to one another."

Lily's eyebrows disappeared into her hairline; for all their comfortable chatter over the past week, this was the first time that he had brought up her family. Severus plowed on.

"Oh, there are differences, of course. The eyes, obviously…and you'd have had a few inches on her, no doubt. You have a bit of a harder edge to you as well. But, then, you're more a woman than she ever was. For all of the wonderful things about her, I cannot deny that Lily Evans died a girl."

Lily sighed; she privately pitied the man who still mourned her namesake. What comfort could she offer a man who had spent twenty years in love with a woman who had never loved him back? Tentatively, she reached out to place a hand on his arm. At her touch, he immediately jerked out of his revive and began to spout rapid half apologies.

"Madame Potter- have to excuse me- don't know what I was thinking- must have had too much to drink…I just- good night," he said, beating a rapid retreat.

Lily groaned as the door to his bedroom closed with a loud thud. She slammed back the rest of her brandy in one gulp, not looking forward to the next morning at all.

…

The next morning Lily woke early, muttering darkly as she began to massage the kinks out of her back; she had charmed the couch cushions as soft as she could, but nothing could take the place of a good old-fashioned mattress. She crept into the bathroom, deciding that if Severus wanted to wallow, he might as well have the peace to do it. After she washed and dressed, she made her way to the fireplace and ordered some breakfast from the kitchens. Severus made his way out of his room reluctantly soon after a manically grinning House Elf had appeared to deliver their food.

After the elf left, he nodded stiffly to her, "Mistress Potter."

Lily rolled her eyes, "Honestly, Severus, I thought that I'd broken you of being so formal. Please don't make me start from the beginning."

He sighed, "I'm sorry, Lily…it's just…I wanted you to know that I am not confusing you with your grandmother."

She smirked at him over her tea, "Of course you're not, Severus…our relationship is so much more deliciously awkward."

His eyebrows lifted, just slightly, "You have a wicked sense of humor for a Gryffindor."

She now grinned at him in earnest, "Could be because I'm a Ravenclaw."

"Heavens, your father must have died from shock."

She laughed out loud, "No, but my mother's parents almost did; I'm the youngest, you see, and they thought my sorting over and done with before it even happened. Gryffindor is a bit of a family tradition. I was the first one in ages to go to another house. It's quite funny, actually. Who would mark a Ravenclaw for the biggest rebel in a room full of Gryffindors?"

He nodded sagely, "So, you're a Weasley, then?"

It was her turn to look surprised, "How did you get to that?"

He shrugged, "Powers of deduction; your mother was obviously a Gryffindor, and all of the girls in your father's year have close relatives in different houses. So it stands to reason that your mother was a Gryffindor either slightly older or younger than your father. Plus the red hair; it's a recessive trait, you know."

She did a little mock bow from her seated position, "I bow to your superior intellect, O Great Potions Master."

He snorted into his porridge; who would have ever thought that Severus Snape would find some of the best company he'd had in ages on the Potter family tree?

…

A/N- Hello! I just wanted to thank everyone who has been reading this fanfic. I realize that I am a flaky updater at best and the fact that you all put up with it for the sake of this story thrills me to no end. I never really expected this story to get any attention because of how obscure the category is, so I am continually humbled by the small but loyal following that has risen up around it. Your excitement about this story is the best reward that I could ever hope for. I just want to thank you all so, so much and to say that it is a genuine pleasure writing for you.

-GM-


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

...

Lily smiled as she read the letter that she had received with the morning post. She tossed the bedraggled owl that had delivered the missive a bit of dry toast and it gave a muffled hoot of thanks. Meanwhile, she took a triumphant sip of pumpkin juice. Severus, who had gotten up to pour another cup of coffee, leaned over her shoulder to read her letter with a detached curiosity and grimaced.

"Why on earth," he asked, pausing to take a sip of his coffee, "Would you want to work at the Hog's Head?"

Lily laughed, already digging though the side table drawers for a scrap of parchment and a quill with which to write her reply, "Well, why wouldn't I?" she quipped, "It's really quite perfect," she said.

Severus sneered, "What? A perfect place to get food poisoning?"

Lily's smile was sweet, though her reply was tart, "A perfect place to get paid, actually. Aberforth is wants to beat whatever Rosmerta offers by half. Thinks a pretty barmaid would be good for business and he's quite willing to pay."

Severus squirmed a bit, uncomfortable with this sudden feeling of protectiveness, "Do you really want to get mixed up with that sort, Lily?"

Lily snorted and rolled her eyes, "I'm touched by your concern, Severus," she mumbled, a quill now perched between her teeth as she continued her search for parchment. Finding it, she laid both on the tabletop before replying more clearly, "It's perfect because it's so dodgy. You get the sort in there that you don't get in the Three Broomsticks- plus you get fewer of them. You can eavesdrop without too much trouble. It's a good place to keep abreast of things that are in the works."

Severus sighed. He couldn't deny that Lily had probably found the best place to work that she could.

Lily left the rest of her breakfast untouched as she finished penning her response to Aberforth. She then slipped on her trainers for a quick run up to the Owlery to send her reply.

Severus sunk into the depths of his armchair and sighed. For a man who had, for many years, quite enjoyed his solitude, he had to admit that he found Lily's company rather pleasant. He realized that it was only a matter of time until she would move out now. Although he had always known that she would leave before the students descended, he had quite hoped that she would stay on as long as possible- perhaps through August.

He would quite miss the little ways that her presence had impinged upon his life once she was gone; she tried to upset things as little as possible, but, then, there were things that she couldn't help. For instance, a scent, unmistakably her's, had slowly but surely worked its' way into his towels. He smiled…she smelled like apple blossoms.

Her more endearing eccentricities had slowly become expected. Most days, she sang in the shower; usually Muggle jazz. He didn't think that she would ever admit it, but her voice was beautiful.

Then there were the ways that she improved his life as well. On nice days, as many as there were in Scotland, they would take walks around the lake, simply chatting. They were both of a similar intellectual bent and relished the opportunity to have someone to bounce ideas off of.

Or the simple things that they would do together...they would sometimes just take a walk into the village to browse the shops and have a drink. Almost like…

But the idea didn't bear thinking. The mere thought was bizarre. Incestuous, even.

It was then that Lily returned, cheerily informing him that she was going to take a shower. He was about to reply just as he caught a hint of her scent meandering behind her.

Apple blossoms.

Never had Severus Snape thought that he would be stopped for words by a simple scent. He heard the streams of water hiss forth from the shower head and the opening bars of an Ella Fitzgerald song swell above the droning sound of water on stone.

Severus put aside his coffee, now cold, and walked to the liquor cabinet, grabbing a bottle of scotch with more force than was strictly necessary. Fuck waiting for noon, Severus Snape needed a drink.


End file.
